Local MP and former Care Minister, Caroline Dinenage MP, has welcomed the publication of the ‘People at the Heart of Care’ adult social care reform white paper.
Successive governments have failed to provide a long-term solution for the crisis facing our social care system. The proposed reforms, backed by £1.7 billion, aim to give those who receive care – as well as their families and carers – greater choice, control and support to lead an independent life with fair, tailored and accessible care.
The ten-year plan for Adult Social Care includes:
- £500 million investment into our adult social care workforce, so they have the opportunity to progress in their careers while providing an even better standard of care. This will help recognise their valued skills and prioritise their wellbeing.
- £300 million Housing Transformation Fund, to help local authorities increase the range and amount of new supported housing, providing more choice, care and support. This is alongside a new practical service to make repairs and changes in peoples’ homes to help them remain safe and stay with their families.
- £150 million to drive new technology and digitisation across social care, to support independent living and improve the quality of care as well as making the system more efficient. This will include acoustic sensors to help residents sleep uninterrupted and allow carers to monitor them safely, as well as improved digital care records to make sure all those responsible for their care have the latest up-to-date details.
- £70 million to help local authorities better plan and develop the support and care options available, in addition to increasing the upper limit of the Disabled Facilities Grant for home adaptations such as stairlifts, wet rooms and home technologies to allow people to live where they want to and increase the options for care.
- £30 million to help local areas innovate with new ways to deliver social care, so individuals have better personalised care.
- £25 million to kickstart a change in the services provided to support unpaid carers, and their availability across the country, to boost support and increase access to respite services giving them much needed support and a break.
- A new national website, to provide easily accessible information for the public on social care and at least £5 million to pilot new ways to help people understand and access the care and support available.
Speaking in Parliament on this issue today, Caroline said:
“I'd like to first of all congratulate my Honourable Friend on bringing forward this milestone piece of work it really is very long awaited. The devil of course is in the detail, and I look forward to reading that detail with great interest.
I know she recognises that the care cap alone is not going to solve the adult social care crisis facing our country at the moment. We need imaginative bold system reform, we need much better integration and above all we need a plan to improve how we recruit, how we retain and how we value that care workforce and the army of unpaid carers out there.
It is a massive task; I know she's up to it but I'm really keen to get her reassurance that once and for all we have the Government's commitment to fix this problem.”
Care Minister, Gillian Keegan replied;
“I would like to thank the Honourable Lady for all her work in this area as well, I've just come for the end of the journey and there's many many people who have been working on this for many many years and they should all take credit for this work and reaching this point.
Absolutely, you have my firm commitment that the government is absolutely committed to fixing social care, as I said we cannot level up without fixing social care.”